LEGO World Cup mega trophy assembled in New York with 1.3 million blocks By Beatriz
2 min read
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As the final phase of the 2026 World Cup mobilizes football enthusiasts globally, a distinct emblem of the tournament has become the focus of attention in New York. The attraction stands out not for its sporting value, but as an impressive feat of engineering. In the emblematic Rockefeller Plaza, located in Manhattan, an official FIFA trophy, measuring a remarkable 8.47 meters high, was built entirely with LEGO bricks, transforming one of the city’s most iconic public spaces into a monumental artistic installation.
Precisely 1,363,402 pieces were used to build it, consolidating the work as one of the largest structures ever created by LEGO. To support the colossal weight of the building, which totals approximately 4.2 tons, it was essential to design an internal steel frame, weighing approximately 3.5 tons. This structure, although not visible to observers, is fundamental to ensuring the stability of the sculpture and its resistance to both wind and loads distributed across its vast surface, a testament to the complexity of engineering required for such constructions.
Assembly began at the company’s model manufacturing unit in Kladno, Czech Republic, and lasted eight months. Around 59 specialists, including designers, engineers, model makers and assembly technicians, dedicated more than 7 thousand hours to the project. After completing the manufacturing phase, the trophy was subdivided into 16 sections for transport across the Atlantic Ocean, and was later rebuilt in Manhattan, in a logistical operation as challenging as the making itself.
LEGO’s presence has long transcended children’s environments. In recent years, the corporation has directed its investments towards the development of monumental urban facilities. Such works act as genuine studies of ephemeral architecture, temporarily integrating into the urban landscape and demonstrating the versatility of its blocks.
The inherent complexity of these projects lies in the very nature of the material. Although each individual piece is light and small, the joining of hundreds of thousands of blocks leads to the accumulation of substantial loads, which require rigorous structural calculations, analogous to those used in conventional construction projects. For this reason, it is common for the brand’s grandiose sculptures to incorporate internal metal supports, designed to distribute the weight and prevent any type of deformation in the structure.
